Mass Effect Slipstream - Book 0: Seeds
by Alan Tryth
Summary: A simple request sends Dreamer and intergalactic troublemaker, Glenda Adams Soleil, on a path that ultimately yields more fruit than expected, and gives John and Tali Shepard an anniversary that they will never forget. Post ME3, and sort of a prequel to Mass Effect Slipstream. Definitely a prequel to Kyra'Shor vas Shepard.
1. Chapter 1 - It Never Hurts to Ask

**Chapter 1**

Never hurts to ask

Glenda Adams Soleil was used to getting requests. As a smuggler on Eden Prime, she'd mostly dealt with weapon mods and the occasional pistol. As a member of the team that took down the Reapers, she'd brought in equipment from across the galaxy and beyond. After the war, Glen built the home for John and Tali'Zorah Shepard and had the distinction of being Tali's maid of honor. It wasn't just that Glen was a helpful person; she was a Dreamer, and the universe has a way of seeing that those with great skills get a chance to exercise those skills regularly.

Take the house; the quarian efforts to build homes was hindered by the fact that they'd lived in ships for generations. Many weren't even sure how to function as a society in terms of living in individual homes within a city; they were too used to the close-knit communities that formed aboard ships. Knowing this (and having plenty of time to build while the Normandy carried the groom and bride to be back to Rannoch), Glen designed a structure that wasn't so much a house as it was a small town; individual families (or in this particular case, the friends Shepard and Tali made throughout their mission to defeat the Reapers) had bedrooms, bathrooms, and recreational space to themselves, yet shared a much larger recreational area, kitchen, garden, and a sizeable area designed for meetings, parties, and ceremonies.

The concept was simple, allowing the quarians to live in close-knit communities much like that of a ship while still allowing them to grow accustomed to having more personal space. That the idea came from the dragons of the Mountains of Morning was a fact that Glen was reluctant to admit, but when she did (and after she explained just what a dragon was), the quarians had been surprisingly quick to adopt the Shepard home as a model for much of Rannoch's new housing. Of course, Glen did her best to make sure Shepard's home stayed the most impressive; John Shepard wanted a home like no other for his queen, and Glen always made a point to deliver on her requests.

Even so, Glen wasn't prepared to have her work interrupted one morning when John Shepard slammed open the door to her room in what was known as the Shepard house, and exclaimed, "I need strawberries!"

It took a few moments for the shock to wear off, and a few moments more for her rattled brain to interpret his words. Even then, her immediate response was reduced to a short, startled, and simple, "What?"

"I need strawberries," repeated the man who brought about the downfall of the Reapers.

Glen blinked at him a few times before slowly removing her glasses and setting them on her desk. Clasping her hands together and leaning forward, she asked, "Context?"

"They're for Tali." His cheeks flushed, John said, "Our first anniversary's coming up, and I wanted to give her something special."

"Okay," Glen said, still a little confused by the request. "Getting seeds shouldn't be too hard, and there's plenty of space in the garden, but … well … the whole leva dextro amino thing-"

'I know, I know." John said, "But you did grow that oak tree in the meeting hall."

It was true, Glen had spent quite a bit of time on the oak tree that stood in the middle of the meeting hall. She loved oak trees; on Vinta, they were practically her calling card. Heck, the first thing she saw when going into the Dream Realm was an oak tree.

"Yeah, but that was different." Glen said. "All the tree needs is sunlight and water, both of which are universally omni-chiral. You're asking me to turn a leva plant into a dextro one. I wouldn't even know where to begin to-"

The look of disappointment on John's face made Glen pause. "This is really important to you," she said, raising an eyebrow.

"Of course it's important! Tali's the most important thing in the universe to me, and I just … I wanted to give her something special,"

"Yeah, I guess strawberries are kinda special." Glen closed her eyes, a memory of running a fresh strawberry across the soft fur of Teria's stomach flashing through her mind. She opened her eyes to see a look of sympathy in John's face.

"Thinking of Teria?" he asked, a kind smile on his face.

"Always," she said, rubbing the amethyst heart pendant hanging from her neck.

John sat down on the edge of her desk. "I can't imagine having to spend three thousand years away from Tali. She's gone more than a few days, and I'm a wreck."

"It's rough." Glen admitted. "Part of me wonders if I shouldn't find me a nice quarian husband or wife and settle down for a while. Hell, I could marry an asari and still outlive them before reuniting with Teria."

"If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with, huh?" Shepard shook his head. "Can't say I'd do it, but then again, I'm not the one having to wait. What do you think Teria would say?"

"I don't know." Glen admitted. "Sometimes, it feels like our whole relationship's been her waiting on me."

A long moment of silence passed between them. John eventually stood up and said, "Whatever you decide, Tali and I support you all the way."

"I know." Glen smiled at him. "But it's nice to hear you say that."

John gave Glen a friendly pat on the shoulder before heading for the door.

"John!" Glen called out just as he put his hand on the door handle. "I'll look into the strawberry thing. Get back to me in a week or two, and I'll let you know if you need to start looking for another present."

John cleared the distance between them in three long steps and pulled her into a bear of a hug. "I knew I could count on you!"

Glen awkwardly patted the man's back, secretly wondering just what she'd gotten herself into.


	2. Chapter 2 - Such a Small Thing

**Chapter 2**

 **Such a Small Thing**

Glen walked around the constructor pod mounted to the floor in the middle of her workshop. Technically, it was John and Tali's workshop … it was their house, after all, and Tali still loved to tinker. Still, with all the help Glen had given them both before and after the war, they made it clear their home was hers, and for her that meant access to the best workshop short of the one in Ebott, back on Earth.

Finding a Glyche facility near Rannoch had been difficult, but locating one, sneaking in, and making off with an entire constructor pod had been a feat unto itself. Glen just hoped CIC Janus would be willing to forgive her at some point in the next two-thousand years.

Once she was satisfied that the constructor was running properly. She set a single tiny black seed in the cushioned interior before closing the door and turning her attention back to the monitors surrounding the pod. Taking a deep breath, she said, "All right, run a full scan on the seed."

The pod was originally designed to accommodate core units, and by association most bipedal humanoids. As such, the tiny black seed was barely visible to Glen as the pod angled forward until perfectly vertical. It turned to the first monitor, signaling the attached scanner unit to begin a detailed scan

The pod was nearing its first cycle when Glen heard a voice that made her freeze.

"Glenda? What are you doing in there?"

Glen spun about, a reflexive smile on her face. "Tali!"

Tali smiled back. It was hard to make out with the mask, but Glen had come to learn the little tells on what was visible of the quarian's face.

"What are you working on?" Tali asked, approaching the constructor pod with obvious interest.

"Huh? Oh this?" Glen said, trying her best to glance back at the constructor as though it were the least interesting thing she'd ever seen. "Bah. Pet project. Probably won't work anyway. Forget about that, girl; how've been? I haven't seen you in at least a month!"

Tali let out a sigh before sitting down on an empty storage box. As Glen sat down beside her, Tali said, "I just came back from an extended gene therapy session."

Glen gave her a sympathetic smile. "Didn't go well?"

"That would be an understatement." Tali sighed again. "At this rate, I'll be an old woman before I can get rid of this wretched suit."

"You aren't having trouble with the scrubbers I installed in the house, are you?" Glen asked, only for Tali to shake her head.

"The scrubbers works great, but I still have to wear my suit when I go outside. I want to feel the wind in my hair, Glen! The warmth of the sun on my skin. I want to be able to wear a bikini when John and I go to the beach, and to swim in the ocean without worrying about rashes or infections."

"Lord knows I feel for you, girl." Glen said, rubbing Tali's shoulder. "Bein' stuck in skin-tight clothes would be like a nightmare for me."

"I wish I could wear clothes like yours." Tali said, her hand running along the green-and-gray stripes of Glen's shirt. "They look so comfortable."

"Teria always said I dressed like a slob." Glen confessed. "Baggy shirt, baggy shorts, sandals. Underwear optional, though tigreth aren't really big on undergarments anyway." A sly smile crossed Glen's face as she added, "though John might be more receptive to something with silk and lace."

Tali's blush was faintly visible through her helmet. "I do have some things Kasumi gave me, but … well, to be honest, once I take my suit off for the day …"

"Ah. Gotcha." Glen said, nodding. "I'm the same way."

"Really?"

Cheeks warm, Glen let out a cough and said, "How about we get some lunch then head down to the beach for a while to catch up? I'm assuming you did more than just gene therapty while you were gone."

"Well, I did stop by Garrus's new home on Palavan." The light in Tali's eyes grew brighter as she said, "Doctor Michel was there."

"Ooh!" Glen said, rubbing her hands together. "This I gotta hear. Just give me a sec, all right?"

Glen gave the constructor pod a quick once over before rejoining Tali by the workshop door.

"What exactly are you working on anyway?" Tali asked..

"Just something for a friend." Glen said dismissively. "Now, you were saying about our dear friend Garrus and the good Doctor?"

It turned out Tali had a lot to say about Garrus and Doctor Michel, about their engagement, about how they were considering a home on Palavan, but Tali convinced them to permanently move into the rooms Glen built for them. By the time Tali finished telling Glen everything, the two had eaten lunch and walked the fifteen-minute path down the cliffside to a long, beautiful beach. The two women laughed as they walked through the warm sand amid the soothing sounds of the ocean waves.

"I swear, even his face-plates were blushing!" Tali said, making Glen laugh all the harder.

"Aw, man!" Glen said, shaking her head. "I am gonna have so much fun teasing him when they get here. Say, when are they getting here?"

"In a few months." Tali said, staring down at the sand. "There's, um, something they're wanting to get done first."

Glen focused on the warm sand slipping through her toes as she waited patiently for Tali to continue.

"They are adopting. Two girls; one human, the other turian."

"Really?" Glen said, her grin widening. "That's great! I'm sure they'll make great parents. Creator knows there are still plenty of orphaned children out there looking for good families. Y'know, you and John aughtta think about it, give the Vakarian kids a little company."

After a moment of silence, Glen realized that Tali wasn't beside her anymore. She turned to see the quarian hugging her elbows and looking strangely small.

"Tali," Glen said, smile fading. "What's wrong, sweetie?"

"I … that is, John and I, we were talking. About children, I mean. Adopting."

"And?"

Tali let out a sigh that somehow left her looking even smaller.

Glen's jaw went slack. "No! He … he didn't want any kids?"

"On the contrary; he said he'd love a big family."

"Then … you don't want children?"

"Of course I do!" Tali said, looking Glen in the eyes. "Keelah, this would complete everything! I'm on my home world, I've got a loving husband, an important role in helping my people, and a beautiful house. Add in a family, and I don't know what else I'd have left to dream."

"Then what's wrong? What's the problem?"

Tali let out another sigh. "I just … always hoped that …"

Realization hit Glen like a tall ocean wave. "You wanted to have children of your own."

Tali hung her head. "You're right, Glen … there are so many children who need a good home, children who John and I would love as our own unquestioningly, but … is it wrong of me to want a child of my own flesh and blood … of mine and John's?"

Glen shook her head. "Of course not, sweetie! Hell, it'd be weird if you didn't! I myself often wondered what a little Tali/Shepard hybrid would …"

Tali looked at Glen when the Dreamer failed to speak for a few moments. The expression on the Dreamer's face was one of concern with just a touch of horror, a result of imagining a child with Tali's technical ability and John's skill at causing chaos loose in the house.

"Locks on the workshop." Glen said, giving her head a little shake. "Still, I totally get the desire to pass on your genes. That said, you'd have to have realized that would be impossible."

"Of course." Tali said, wringing her hands. "I guess I just thought after everything we accomplished, something as small as this would be simple."

"Hey." Glen put her hands on Tali's shoulders and looked her friend in the eyes. "This isn't small, Tali. Your feelings aren't trivial, Tali, not to me, and certainly not to John."

Tali's bright eyes stared back at Glen for a long moment before she slowly nodded.

Glen smiled and rubbed Tali's cheek. "The best thing you can do right now is to talk to John. Let him know how you feel, and maybe even look into a few options."

"Options?"

"Well, you could always consider artificial insemination."

"You mean … oh. Keelah, I don't know, Glen … I'd have to trust someone a great deal for that. The only quarian man I'd consider is Kal'Reegar, ancestors rest his soul."

"Well, maybe he made plans. Didn't you tell me they kept er, samples from many quarian families to help spread genetic diversity through the fleet?"

"Well … maybe …"

"And if that fails, you could always give ol' Koris a call."

Tali's balled up fist smacked Glen in the arm. Glen let out a laugh as she rubbed her arm. "Just kidding."


	3. Chapter 3 - Helping Hands

**Chapter 3**

 **Helping Hand**

The holographic display above the constructor was quite beautiful in its own way. Glowing lines of proteins and molecules hovered above the constructor pod like holiday decorations. Glen was staring at it, lost in thought, when there was a knock on her bedroom door.

"Come in." Glen said, quickly deactivating the display in case it was Tali. She'd managed to keep her project a secret so far, but she could tell Tali was getting a little suspicious of Glen's constant deflections.

She turned to see her visitors; a heavily pregnant asari and the last of the protheans. "Liara! Javik!" Glen said, smiling at her friends. "It's been too long!"

Liara met Glen with a hug, even as her child met Glen with a muted kick.

"Ha!" Glen said, "Little tyke's got spirit, just like her parents."

"Indeed." Javik commented dourly.

Glen let out another laugh. "Well, someone's a bit grumpy today."

"Sleep is difficult when you are under constant attack."

"Then don't sleep against her stomach." Glen advised.

"I'm not talking about the baby." Javik gave his wife a kiss on the cheek. "I will go speak to Shepard."

"Tell him I'll be there in a few minutes." Liara said before returning the kiss.

Glen waited until Javik departed before laughing.

"He's right." Liara admitted, "I wake up with my sheets in tangles and a line of pillows set up between us."

"Baby's not the only active one then."

"Indeed." Liara approached the constructor, a curious look on her face.

"Ah," Glen said, reactivating the display. "Thought you might want to take a look at this."

"Is this the strawberry project?" Liara asked curiously.

Glen frowned at her. "Don't tell me John asked you too?"

"Actually, he asked if I could help. I may not be the Shadow Broker anymore, but I still have access to my old resources."

"So you're really giving it up, huh?" Seeing Liara's nod, Glen said, "Good on you. A lot of people wouldn't be able to let go of that kind of power."

"Oh, I'll keep a few contacts," Liara said, "But honestly, with the Reapers gone, those resources could be put to better use on the rebuilding effort … with this exception for Tali and John, of course. I have to ask, though; why are you doing this in your bedroom?"

Glen chuckled as she followed Liara's glance around her room. It was quite spacious (small surprise seeing as she built it) before she'd dragged in the constructor and the other equipment inside; now it looked like a lab that happened to have a queen-sized bed in it.

"Tali's working on some technical gobbledygook in the workshop." Glen said, "I can deflect a question or two, but Tali's not an idiot; we work together that long, and she'll figure out what I'm doing." Shaking her head, Glen asked, "Did you have any luck? Y'know, with your resources."

Liara sighed and shook her head. "I'm afraid not. I still don't fully understand how you managed to get that oak tree growing without importing dirt from Earth. I've looked into hybridization, seed modification, genetic alteration. You?"

Glen let out a hollow laugh. "I'm gonna be honest here. I don't have a clue what I'm doing. I've gone through a bushel of seeds already, a bushel! Do you have any idea how many strawberry seeds fit in a damn bushel?"

"What's the problem?" Liara asked.

"The problem is I'm not a geneticist. I'm a builder."

"But the oak tree-"

"Everyone goes on and on about the damn oak tree! Look, I just grafted local roots to those of the oak tree and gave 'em a little extra push." Glen raised her rune hand emphatically. "Even if that worked for making a strawberry bush, the fruit would still be leva. That's why I grabbed the constructor; the Glyche used these to modify core units down to the synthetic cellular level. Normal DNA is a piece of cake compared to a Glyche cell's complexity."

"So how's it worked out so far?"

Glen sighed and motioned for Liara to follow her. She led the asari to a number of translucent cases sitting on what used to be a bookshelf. Some were little more than cups filled with dirt, while others held plant-life that could only be described as strange.

Gesturing to the cases as she spoke, Glen said, "As you can see, most wouldn't even grow. Seeds were nonviable. Most of those that did didn't last very long, and the few that managed to survive to maturity can't put out fruit."

"What about this one?" Liara said, her eyes on a large covered container holding a very healthy-looking strawberry patch bearing a large number of plump blue strawberries. "They look delicious."

Glen forced a smile on her face. "They do, don't they? Nice sweetness, just the right amount of tart … and then your blood pressure shoots through the roof, your tongue swells up to four times it's size, and if you're lucky, you pass out before your organs liquify."

Liara pulled her hand back, a look of horror on her face. Glen nodded in agreement. "Yeah, that one's getting burned once I'm sure I can't get any useful information out of it. It is the only one with fruit, after all."

Glen sat down on the side of her bed with a sigh. "What I need is a absolutely wizard geneticist, someone who can build a life form like I build a house. I need …"

After a few moments of silence, Liara said, "Mordin?"

"Yeah." Glen rubbed the back of her head. "He'd have this done in a jiffy. The way I'm heading, I'll go down in history as the inventor of the carnivorous strawberry."

Liara giggled. "It'd certainly make a memorable anniversary gift."

"Hmm." Glen fell back against her bed and let out another long sigh. Glancing at Liara, she asked, "So what brings you here today, anyway? I thought you and your hubby were off seeing the galaxy."

"We were." Liara said, sitting down on the bed beside Glenda. "But now that I'm getting close to term, we thought it best to settle down for a while."

"Ah, so you're gonna ask Tali and Shepard if you can stay here."

"Actually," Liara said, "They asked us."

Glen smiled. "I had a feeling. They've turned down a few quarian families, y'know. At first, I thought they wanted their privacy, but when it comes down to it, I think they hoped some of the old team would come back."

"Not just them, apparently." Liara said, smiling at Glen. "You built this place, after all."

"Guilty as charged. It just didn't seem right, y'know, all of us going our separate ways after all we went through … and hey, this is me saying that."

"Well, you've made a lovely home for John and Tali, and for us apparently."

"Hey, when in doubt, build rooms that can handle any species."

They laughed at this, but Glen's laugh stopped short. Seeing the look on her friend's face, Liara tentatively laid a hand on Glen's arm and asked, "What is it?"

"Could it be that simple?" She whispered, seemingly to herself.

"Could what be that simple?"

Glen stood up abruptly and headed for the door. Liara, understandably confused, asked, "What do you need? What are you doing?"

"I'll be back." Glen said before closing the door on her asari friend.


	4. Chapter 4 - Whoopsie

**Chapter 4**

 **Whoopsie**

Glen sighed as her phone touched her ear. "Hello?"

"Hey, Glen, it's Kasumi. You left a message?"

"I did. Yesterday."

"Sorry, I was on a job. This rich elcor hired me to grab Van Gogh's Starry Night. Hardly the most difficult heist I've ever pulled, but-"

"Don't take this personally, Kasumi, but now really isn't a good time."

"Yeah, Liara said you were up to something."

"You're at John and Tali's place?"

"I've been meaning to stop by and make sure John's taking care of our sweet little sister. Quite a place you built for them. Tell me, was it intentional for it to be so big, or are you so bored that you just keep adding on to the place?"

"Hey, I'm a Builder. I build. You wouldn't believe how fulfilling it is to be putting things together again, as opposed to blasting them to pieces."

"Well, it's a fantastic home. I couldn't help but notice you even included a room for little old me."

"Gotta provide for my little sisters, right?"

Kasumi chuckled. "Softie. Enough about me, though; what are you up to?"

"Oh, I'd say about twenty feet."

"What?"

Glen sighed and looked up at the floor of the Central Core, her body suspended in mid-air close enough to the rings surrounding the Galruga Facility's core to feel a slight breeze as they spun past her.

"I may have gotten myself into a bit of a pickle." Glen, said, glaring down at the hologram of CIC Janus.

"That's a bit of an understatement." Janus replied, simulated eyebrow raised. "Though I must confess, I didn't expect a human to have the gall to steal from me." Janus crossed her arms. "Twice."

"Worth a try." Glen muttered. "Besides, I just wanted a few vials of transversion cells."

"Just a few vials of transversion cells." Janus repeated, pacing slowly beneath the suspended Dreamer. She picked up one of the five vials formerly in Glen's possession and tapped it thoughtfully against her other hand. "Do you know how many cells a single vial contains?"

"Uh, at least fifty?" Glen guessed.

"One hundred?" asked Kasumi's voice from the phone.

"Fifteen-thousand, six hundred and twenty seven." Janus said sharply. "And how many would it take to infect a humanoid?"

"Infect? Glen, what does he mean 'infect'?"

"There were some transversion cells corrupted by an outside source that caused some trouble on Vinta." Glen said. "It was … bad."

"How many?" Janus repeated.

Sighing, Glen said, "One."

"One?!" Kasumi said.

"One." Janus set the vial beside the others and resumed her pacing. "All that stands between the Universe and another Corruption is one errant cell in the wrong hands, so you can understand why I might have a problem with the thief who made off with a constructor pod, one of the only pieces of technology capable of reprogramming them, coming back for a large supply of transverion cells."

"Look, I admit I should've asked about the constructor, but in my defense …"

Janus put her hands on her hips. "Well?"

Glen did her best to shrug. "Nah, I got nothing. I really needed it, though."

"Really? For what?"

"Strawberries."

Janus stared at her for a moment before bursting into laughter. Glen chuckled uncertainly along with her for a few moments before asking, "So, uh, could you let me go?"

"No," Janus gestured at Glen. Whatever was keeping her up stopped doing so, causing her to plummet to the floor. She put her hands up in the vain hope of catching herself, only to freeze again inches from the floor.

CIC Janus waved her hand again, making Glen spin about until she was right-side up again. She approached her slowly, pausing only to catch her phone as it fell. "It seems your friend has broken contact. A smart move; tracking the transmission to the source would've been a simple matter."

"Doesn't really matter." Glen said glumly. "She's probably on another planet anyway."

"You truly expect me to believe you came here alone?"

"No," Glen admitted, "But as much as I hate to admit it, it's the truth. I was hoping to get in and out before you noticed."

"And you put yourself at risk for strawberries."

"Yes." Glen paused, before adding, "It's a kind of fruit: red, tart, a bit sweet-"

"I know what a strawberry is." Janus snapped. "Do you seriously expect me to believe you broke through my security for the sake of a f-few s-strawb-b-b-b-"

The CIC's eyes widened as she continued to stutter. She looked accusingly at Glen, her mouth still stuck in the middle of saying 'strawberry' as the field restraining Glen fell away, dropping her to the floor.

She was still staring at the frozen CIC in shock when small hands grabbed her shoulders and hauled her to her feet. Glen was spun about to see a smiling human face mostly obscured by a large hood.

"Kasumi?" Glen said in disbelief. "You're here!"

"Of course I am here. I would've been here sooner, but I'm not as fluent with the Glyche language as you." Kasumi hesitated a moment, a disappointed look falling over her face. "Shame on you, Glenda!"

"Don't call me that." Glen said automatically.

Apparently ignoring her, Kasumi continued, "Planning a heist without letting me in on it! I thought we agreed that I do sneaking and you do the smashing people in the face."

"Yeah, well-"

"B-b-b-er-r-" Janus stuttered, drawing our attention.

"Yeah, maybe we should save this conversation for later." Kasumi said, ducking around the projection and grabbing the vials. "Say," she asked as she helped Glen slip the vials into a padded container. "Are these things as dangerous as he said?"

"In the wrong hands, yes. We're making strawberries." Glen zipped up the container. "All right; let's get out of here before whatever you did wears off.

"Sounds like a plan."


	5. Chapter 5 - Syntax Error

**Chapter 5**

 **Syntax Error**

Glen turned to greet Kasumi as the small thief slipped into the room.

"Did you get it?' Glen asked.

Kasumi held up a vial filled with a dark blue liquid. "Not a problem."

"Excellent!" Glen motioned for Kasumi to follow her to the constructor pod. It had a few additional modifications, most notably a large interface pad currently occupied by a small mechanical spider-like construct.

"Kasumi," Glen said, indicating the construct. "Screep. Screep, this is Kasumi."

"Charmed, I'm sure." Kasumi said, raising an eyebrow at Screep.

"Screep is a Glyche skriever." Glen said, rubbing Screep's head plate as another might pet a cat. "These little fellows were the backbone of the Glyche civilization. Given resources and time, they can build just about anything; core units, facilities, even Starscreamers like the Gamechan. Little Builders, that's what they are, which is why I asked Screep to help me out on the strawberry project."

"Really?"

"Indeed. Now, the vial, if you please."

Kasumi shrugged and handed over the vial. Glen took it and plugged it into one of the new additions to the constructor pod. A holographic screen popped into existence above the console, showing a DNA helix.

"All right," Glen said, pulling out another vial, this one filled with red liquid.

"Uh, Glen," Kasumi asked, her eyes on the vial, "Is that … uh … yours?"

"John's actually." Glen said. "I'd use my blood, but between my interactions with the Glyche and the Kindred, my cybernetics, that whole avatar of the Solarion thing which I still don't really get, I'm worried that I might not be human enough for what we're trying to do."

Glen put the vial of John Shepard's blood in the console beside that which now held Tali's blood sample. A holographic rendering of John's DNA appeared above it.

"All right." Glen said, rubbing her hands together. "Last but not least …"

Glen opened the constructor and placed a single strawberry seed inside the compartment. Upon closing the door, a third hologram rose above the constructor, this time showing the genetic pattern held within the strawberry seed.

"Okay," Kasumi said, "Now what?"

"Now I simply explain the problem to our friend, Screep."

"I dunno, Glen; I mean, building a starship's impressive, but can Screep really build a dextro strawberry from the ground up?"

"Aha!" Glen said, raising a finger. "not from the ground up. We don't need to convert the strawberry; we simply need to mirror the levo proteins so that the strawberry is technically both."

Kasumi raised an eyebrow at her friend. "Excuse me?"

"My mistake was trying to convert the entire structure of the strawberries so that they were dextro-compatible. What we need is to make a strawberry that's both levo and dextro." Glen paused a moment before adding, "Omni."

"Excuse me?"

"Omni-protein." Glen said with a grin. "Universal compatability. The body takes the dna strand it needs, and in doing so tears apart the strand it doesn't, making it harmless. The body just converts it to harmless waste, no anaphalactic shock guaranteed."

"And you said you aren't a genetic scientist!" Kasumi teased.

Glen coughed and rubbed the back of her head. "Well, I'm not. It was Screep's idea."

Screep let out an affirmative chirp. Surprised, Kasumi said, "Wow. You are a smart little thing, aren't you?"

Screep let out a soft trilling noise that sounded strangely like a purr as Kasumi rubbed the skriever's head plate.

Rolling her eyes, Glen muttered, "Yeah, yeah, he's a friggin' genius. You gonna get to work or what?"

Screep let out another chirp before tapping its small legs against the controls.

"And you understand what it is we're wanting, right? To make sure the fruit produced by the seed in the constructor is compatible with both blood samples."

The skriever let out an annoyed buzz that made Glen raise her hands.

"Hey, just making sure." Turning to Kasumi, Glen clapped her hands together and said, "How about we get some lunch so our little friend here can work in peace?"

"Sounds good to me." Kasumi said with a grin. "If we hurry, we might be able to get in on that picnic basket I saw John packing on the way down here."

"Good catch!" Glen said, bumping fists with Kasumi as they headed for the door.

They caught the happy couple just as they were about to step onto the elevator that led directly to the base of the cliff upon which the house was built. Tali grabbed John's hand moments before he could hit the button.

"Wait," she said, eyes narrowing. "I sense something."

"Yeah?"

"I sense … trouble."

"That's an awfully nice picnic basket you got there, John." Glen said, poking her head out from the left side of the elevator door.

Kasumi poked her head out a moment later, a mischievous grin on her face. "Be a shame if anything happened to it."

"Yeah, they're trouble all right." John said, crossing his arms. "An arms-smuggler and her thief-accomplice."

Kasumi and Glen exchanged looks for a moment before both slowly sinking to the ground, back-to-back and clutching their stomachs.

"So hungry …" Kasumi said as Glen let out a piteous moan. "Need … chicken sandwiches."

Tali giggled even as her husband proclaimed, "Mercy? The Shepard-Zorah Empire shows no mercy to its enemies!"

He pressed a button that made the doors slide shut, but not before Glen blocked it with her tek-boot protected foot. This gave Kasumi enough time to slip inside the lift. Tali held the picnic basket, a determined look on her face until she fell into a fit of giggles.

"Kasumi!" She managed between spouts of laughter, "You bosh'tet! This is unfair!"

Tali collapsed, still giggling as the picnic basket appeared to float out of the lift. John lunged at it, but Glen brought her foot up just in time to trip the muscular human. Finally regaining her breath, Tali hopped over the bodies of John and Glen, and quickly gave chase to the picnic basket as Kasumi carried it away.

John quickly got to his feet and moved to join the pursuit, but Glen grabbed his ankle to stop him.

"Hey," Glen said, "Been waiting for a chance to catch you away from Tali."

"Really? Why?" His eyes widened. "The strawberries?"

"I'll know for sure by the end of the day. Between you and me, though, it looks pretty good."

Grinning, John grabbed Glen's hand and hauled her to her feet before hugging her. "Thank you, Glen."

"Hey, glad I could help."

"Oh, not for that." Glen caught the glow of an omni-tool in her peripheral vision. She scarcely had time to turn before the magnetic soles of her tek-boots activated, promptly sticking to the outer wall of the elevator chamber. Glen tried to deactivate them, only to find that John had shorted out the boots, essentially cutting off her control until the self-repair protocol repaired the damage.

"Now if you'll excuse me, I've got a picnic basket to liberate." He gave her a mocking bow before hurrying the direction of Tali and Kasumi's laughter.

Glen managed to slip her foot from one of the boots when a familiar chirp caught her ear. She glanced in the direction of the sound only to find Screep focusing its camera eye on her.

"Ah, finished already?" Glen asked as she tugged at her other leg. "I thought it'd at least take you another few hou-AAGH!"

Glen fell face-first on the ground, narrowly missing Screep by about three inches. After a few moments, she pushed herself up and stared the skriever in its camera eye.

"I could use some good news about now."

Screep let out a satisfied-sounding chirp.


	6. Chapter 6 - Not-So-Sinister Plots

**Chapter 6**

 **Not-So-Sinister-Plots**

The greenhouse was one of the first structures Glen built while planning Shepard's home. Shepard planned to live on Rannoch for the rest of his life, Glen perhaps longer, so the ability to produce fresh food was a must. The large, circular room was in the center of the living quarters, and extended to the very top of the home.

A small artificial stream split the greenhouse in half, separating the dextro plants from the levo plants. Glen had made several trips to a small moon two systems from Rannoch to get enough levo-nutrient dirt to grow the cornucopia of fruits, veggies, and mushrooms that had become a staple of both John and Glen's diet. There were several fruit trees on the top level, apples mostly, though Glen hadn't been able to resist growing a banana tree.

That day, however, Glen was busily working in the dextro side of the greenhouse, second floor. There were a few plants there, mostly transferred crops from the live-ship, though Tali herself had discovered a few local plants and shrubs that produced edible fruit. Still, there was plenty of room for Glen to plant the first strawberry sprouts. Screep assured her that the plants had adapted enough to absorb nutrients from the dextro soil, though apparently they would need several more treatments as they went.

Glen just finished packing dirt around the final strawberry plant when she heard the sound of a door sliding open above her, followed by Tali's voice. "Oh! Hi, Glen! I didn't expect to see you working this side of the greenhouse."

Tali was standing just outside the scrubber chamber connecting her and John's part of the house to the greenhouse. She knelt beside Glen, presumably to get a look at the new plants.

"Ah, Tali." Glen said, thinking quickly. "Found these little guys while I was checking the support beams under the house this morning. Liked the look of them."

Glen glanced at Tali to see if she was buying her story, and was surprised to see her friend undoing the last of the clasps of her mask. It let out a soft hiss as she removed it, revealing the smooth gray skin and gentle lines of her face. A mass of black hair tumbled down as she pulled the rest of the helmet from her head and let out a sigh.

Glen stared; she'd seen Tali's face before, but only in a picture John misplaced a few months previous.

"Damn." Glen said, "No wonder he wanted it back so badly."

"Excuse me?"

Glen tore her gaze away from her friend's face. "Just thinkin' out loud. Um …I know I've got scrubbers installed on all the doors here, but is it okay for you to have your mask off around me?"

"Gene therapist's orders." Tali said. "They feel taxing my system a little might help the therapy start taking. Besides …" Tali blushed slightly, the purple tinge in her gray skin more noticeable on her cheeks. "You're family. If anything, we should've done this earlier."

Blushing herself, Glen said, "I'm honored Tali, really, but in here? With all the dirt and plants?"

"Keelah, Glen, you sound just like John. I survived far worse back on Earth after that mobile transport nearly squashed us flat.

"That's …" Sighing, Glen rubbed the back of her head and said, "That's a good point. Just … if you start feeling a little stuffy-"

"I'll put my mask back on." Tali promised, laying a reassuring hand on Glen's arm. "I'll be fine."

"Strong girl." Glen thought as Tali picked up a set of pruners and looked over the plants for signs of wilting.

It had been nothing short of a miracle that Tali survived the injuries she received on Earth during that final run. Glen still remembered the look on John's face as the Normandy took off, leaving them to make it to the Crucible. Glen shook her head; hard to imagine

Shaking her head, Glen asked, "So, you have a chance to catch up with Kasumi?"

"A little. She wants to go shopping later."

"Not sure what she has in mind is technically shopping."

"Actually, I was hoping that you and Liara would come with us." Tali said it in an off-handed way, but Glen could see her friend's hand tremble ever so slightly. "I, um … I want to pick up something for John. It's our anniversary soon."

"Oh?" Glen cocked her head to the side. "A nice dress, perhaps? Something scarlet, silky, and strapless?"

Tali's cheeks darkened ever so slightly. "You think so?"

Glen opened her mouth to reply when a blast of water caught her full in the face. Tali let out a surprised squeal as she too was caught off-guard by the automated sprinklers. The two scrambled out of the main door, the scrubber making a faint humming sound as they passed. Glen stifled a laugh as Tali tried in vain to stop the spray with her hands.

"Fighting a losing battle there, girl." Glen said, "Best to just get outta here."

"R-right! C'mon; my room's closest."

They hurried back into John and Shepard's part of the home. Tali quickly excused herself before rushing into the bathroom, leaving Glen dripping just outside the scrubber, staring at John and Tali's living room. Glen made certain that their section of the home was the largest, and even built much of their furniture. A long horizontal window looked out over the plains where John once felled a Reaper with nothing more than a targeting lazer. The imprint on the canyon floor from where the creature's shattered husk landed was still faintly visible, now partially overgrown with the tall amber grass that grew everywhere on the planet.

Tali emerged from the bathroom in a fluffy purple robe. She handed Glen a thick blue towel before continuing to dry her own hair.

"Thanks." Glen said before doing her best to dry off, at least enough to stop dripping on the carpet. Her eyes caught on Tali's bare hand.

"No more suit today?" Glen asked.

Tali sighed and shook her head. "This isn't like the suit I used back when we were on the Normandy; I can't just isolate sections off, and believe me when I say that the water got everywhere."

"Still feeling okay?"

"I'm fine." Tali said with a resigned sigh. "Wasn't there supposed to be a warning before the sprinklers activated?"

"Yeah," Glen said, drying her feet. "A loud one too, I made sure of it; I don't like getting sprayed in the face anymore than you do. I'll look into it."

Glen headed for the door, only for Tali to quickly step in her path. "You don't have to go right now, do you? I mean, it's not like it's a major problem, and you've been so busy lately, I was hoping we could, y'know, hang out for a little while. While my suit dries, y'know."

Glen gave her friend a curious look. "You got something in mind?"

Tali practically bounced over to the couch and picked up two controllers. The main screen activated, showing the title screen of a game called, "The Sakamota Sisters."

Tali held out a controller, an expectant look in her eye.

Chuckling, Glen said, "All right, but I get to play Bethany."

"Deal."

Tali curled her legs under her as Glen took the seat beside her. Taking the controller, Glen added, "Oh, and about the shopping trip later …"

"Yes?"

"Think we can risk the door for another trip to Vinta?"

Tali's pale eyes brightened with her smile as Tali no doubt thought of the previous visit she and Glen took to the world Glen once (and would one day again) call home. "Ooh! Can we go to Muonsol again?"

Glen grinned. She'd noticed Tali's yearning looks the last time they were in Muonsol, where sweeping gowns of silk were in fashion. "Think I know just what you're looking for. We'll make sure Johnnie-boy remembers this anniversary for a long time."


	7. Chapter 7 - Side-effects

**Chapter 7**

 **Side-effects**

Glen awoke the next morning lying against the oak tree in the common room. She was somewhat surprised to see she was wearing a dress with intricate green and silver designs, as well as Headache. Kasumi was huddled against her side in a blue and black dress of a similar design. Even with a splitting Headache, Glen found herself thinking the thief's short, dark hair was cute … as was the small tattoo of a bunny with a unicorn horn.

Her memories of the previous day were fuzzy; she, Liara, Tali, and Kasumi took the door to Muonsol, capital of Ircandesta and home to the idestan people. There had been shopping … a lot of shopping. So much shopping that Kasumi and One snuck away once or twice to grab a drink at nearby pubs until Kasumi suggested that they deserved to get something nice as well. Glen didn't remember meeting up with Liara and Tali after that … she didn't remember much of anything after that, to be honest; only dancing, drinks, and for some reason, kittens.

Kasumi stirred for a moment before opening her eyes. "Glen?" she asked, sounding as surprised as Glen felt. "Where … What-"

"Yeah, that sums it up," Glen said, helping the thief to her feet. "I don't suppose you remember anything about last night?"

Kasumi shook her head and immediately winced. "Not after that round of … what was it called?"

"Crystallic cider." Glen straightened her dress. She wasn't much for fancy wear, but she thought it was rather fetching … and certainly quite comfortable. Headache kinda ruined the effect, however.

She finally got around to wondering why she was wearing Headache with her dress when she heard Kasumi ask, "Um, Glen? Either I'm still a bit drunk, or that's a cat … with wings."

"What?" Glen spun about to see a calico-furred yulias sitting primly in a doorway that Glen couldn't remember being there the previous day. It did appear as a cat with wings, though Glen knew from experience that was just the tip of the iceberg.

It watched her with the intensity of a feline for a few moments before bowing its head. "Good morning, Miss Glen. I was hoping I'd have a chance to thank you."

"It's talking." Kasumi said, rubbing her eyes. "The winged cat is talking."

Ignoring her friend, Glen said, "Thank me for what?"

The yulias turned, rubbed against the side of the open doorway, and then walked into the room beyond. Mystified, Glen followed, Kasumi following in turn behind her.

According to the schematics, the area beyond the wall was for a planned expansion to the recreational facilities, specifically for a pool. Glen hadn't the chance to build it yet, what with the arrival of Liara and Javik, and the upcoming arrival of Garrus and Doctor Michel … Doctor Vakarian now, Glen supposed. In any case, there should have been very little outside that door, which is why what actually was there caught her completely by surprise.

A field of grass, dotted with the presence of several trees Glen recognized as Noktal, a species native to Vinta, stood within the rounded walls of Glen's expansion. A small lake, easily the size of the swimming pool, stood in the center, its clear water inviting even from a distance.

This, however, was nothing as compared to the occupants of the room. Dozens of yulias inhabited the container, their furry tails wagging as they sat on the branches of the tree, in the sand surrounding the lake, and among the strange platforms throughout the room that Glen realized she must've built for the cat-like avians while she was still intoxicated. Kittens playfully wrestled each other and chased butterflies in the tall grass without a care in the world.

The calico yulias led them to the largest of the trees, where several other adult yulias were waiting.

"Ah, our benefactor awakes," said a fluffy white yulias.

"Benefactor?" Glen asked, still trying to make sense of it all.

"Your offer to give us a safe home was most timely," said an orange tabby. "And the home you built for us is lovely. Once the rest of the terraforming is complete, the yulias will again have a true and safe home."

"The rest of the …" One's eyes fell on another door, this one on the outer wall. She hurried through it, only to find exactly what she feared. Where there was once only the arid plains of Rannoch, now there was green: green grass, trees full of green leaves, even a few apple trees filled with green apples. Plant-life from both Earth and Vinta were visible, not just outside the yulias sanctuary, but all round the entire house.

"Oh, lord." Glen muttered, rubbing her eyes. "Shepard's gonna kill me."

"I dunno," Kasumi said, walking up behind Glen with a small black kitten in tow. The young yulias was purring contentedly as Kasumi scratched behind his ears. "It looks nice, and the yulias are cute. Besides, talking cats that can fly? Bet they'd find easy work as couriers."

"Yeah, but, this is still his and Tali's house." Glen said. "It's one thing to grow a tree, or some plants in a garden; it's another thing altogether to let a biome loose. Tali just got her homeworld back, and now I've made it look like some weird congolomeration of Earth and Vinta."

"Actually," said a voice that made Glen freeze in place, "You did it because we both gave our permission."

Glen spun about to see John approaching her, an amused grin on his face. "You were drunk as hell, but you still managed to do a good job pointing out the needs of your little friends-"

"I'm glad, but still, I wish I'd waited to-"

"… to the Admiralty Board."

Glen's face went pale even as Kasumi started laughing at her expense. "I called the Admiralty board?"

"Oh, yes. Made quite a passionate plea on their behalf. Koris was in tears, or so I heard."

"I can imagine." Glen said, trying to ignore the burning sensation in her cheeks.

John chuckled and gave her a friendly pat on the back. "Don't worry; I'm the one who suggested they stay here while the terraforming sets in. It's only about fifty-square miles, more than enough to give the Yulias a home and give us extra land to farm."

"And Tali's cool with it?" Glen asked.

John smiled. "Very. Let's face it; this place was pretty much a desert. Now, just look at it; trees, grass … life. A real paradise."

"Oh." Glen said sheepishly. "Well … I'm glad. Say, where is Tali anyway?"

Glen was amused to see John's cheeks grow red. "She's sleeping. We were … up late."

"Oh?" Kasumi grinned widely at the former Commander. "Liked the dress, did you?"

John let out a chuckle, clearly a little embarrassed. "Sorry if we kept you up."

"I doubt it." A jaunty little electronic tune made her jump. She looked at Headache's display, her eyes widening when she saw who was calling her.

"It's the Cygros of Muonsol." Glen said, frowning. "Wonder what he wants."

She picked up the call. "Heya, Jyle, how's it-"

"What the hell do you think you're doing, Adams?!" said the enraged idestan.

"Uh …" Glen rubbed the back of his head. "My memories of yesterday are still a little fuzzy."

"Well, let me give you some cliff notes; last night, you and an unknown accomplice snuck into the Center of Knowledge and made off with a very rare and expensive prototype meant to help stabilize part of the Cleftan ecosystem. If that wasn't bad enough, you then proceeded to break into my palace and steal half of the damn royal garden!"

Kasumi sidled quickly out of view as a very surprised Glen digested this information. "Half of the garden, huh? Did I get my old tree?"

"Glenda!"

"uh, I mean …" Glen hesitated a moment before putting her hand over the receiver and making a shushing noise, intermittently stopping to say, "Communications channel … malfunctioning … in dangerous location …"

"Oh, no you don't!" the Cygros said as Glen reached for the disconnect button. "If you don't get over here in the next hour to explain yourself-"

"Can't hear you … reception bad, line insecure … will call back … later." After a final spray of fake static, she cut off the call.

"Ouch." John said, grinning nonetheless. "That sounded bad."

"Bad? Oh, not bad." Glen said, "My stay here just might be longer by a few decades … or centuries."


	8. Chapter 8 - Quarian with a Tummy-ache

**Chapter 8**

 **Quarian with a Tummy-ache**

Between helping the Yulias, checking on the growth of the levo-based ecosystem around the house, and her repeated attempts to make amends with the Cygros of Muonsol, Glen came to cherish the few hours a day she had to work in the garden with Tali. Thanks to the increasing success of her gene therapy, Tali was able to work alongside the Dreamer without her suit. It was always amusing to see what clothing Tali was trying out; one day, she'd be in a sundress, the next she'd be wearing a poncho. She even tried Glen's clothes once; already baggy on Glen, the green and gray-striped shirt and blue jean shorts were comically large on Tali's slight frame.

That day, however, Tali wore a simple yellow dress that brushed against her knees as she walked through the greenhouse, tending to the plant-life. She and Glen were the only two in the greenhouse, as Liara was taking a nap in her and Javik's quarters, and both John and Javik were checking out the progress of the terraforming. Glen still wasn't sure how she managed to reconfigure the prototype she and Kasumi stole, but whatever she'd done was working well. Some of the native Rannoch plant-life was thriving as well, apparently needing nothing more than water and sunlight.

The omni-strawberries were flourishing in the greenhouse. Glen spent the past few days monitoring their enhanced growth and working to make sure the blossoms were properly fertilized. She was thrilled to find that several of the plants now bore clusters of plump, red fruit … as well as blue and purple fruit as well, all otherwise visually identical to normal strawberries. Glen wasn't sure what to make of that, but didn't let it bother her as she gathered up the berries, careful to make sure that Tali didn't notice.

John and Tali's anniversary was the following day, making it critical to know if the strawberries were a success. Glen stared at the final berry for a few moment, knowing what she had to do.

"Well, here goes nothing." Glen muttered before popping the fruit into her mouth.

Tali glanced over at her. "Did you say something, Glenda?"

Glenda shook her head. Taste-wise, it was perfect. The texture seemed fine, and it had just the right mixture of sweet and tart. Closing her eyes, she swallowed and waited.

Glen's stomach clenched at the sound of vomiting, but she wasn't the source. Glen turned to see Tali, one hand over her mouth and the other holding her stomach.

"Tali?" Glen asked, hurrying to help her friend.

"I'm okay." Tali said, shaking her head. "I just feel a little-"

Her eyes widened moments before Tali threw up again. Glen held her friend steady until it passed.

"C'mon," Glen said, "Let's get you back to your room."

Tali nodded breathlessly, her eyes clenched shut. Glen carefully guided her friend into Tali and John's part of the house. Once Tali was comfortably laying on the couch, Glen grabbed a trashcan and a towel from the bathroom and hurried back to her side.

"Thanks, Glen." Tali said, using the towel to clean herself as well as she could.

"I should probably go." Glen said, only for Tali to shake her head.

"I'm not sick, Glen. Here." Tali grabbed Glen's hand and held it to her forehead.

"No fever." Glen said, surprised. "Maybe a side-effect of the gene treatment?"

"Maybe." Tali paused. Glen held up the trash can, but after a few moments, Tali shook her head. "It is still largely experimental. They told me to watch for a number of possible side-effects: vertigo, nausea, sleeplessness, increased … um, appetite."

"Oh?" Glen grinned at her friend, knowing full well what kind of 'appetite' the pause indicated. "You poor thing."

Tali made a face at her. "The list goes on."

"Yeah, well, screwing around with genetics is heavy stuff." Glen said. "But you said it's going better, yeah?"

"Aside from losing my breakfast, yes. My therapist actually seemed a little surprised how quickly my body is adapting to foreign matter." Tali sighed and lay back on the couch. "And I was hoping to spend some time with our new neighbors today."

Chuckling, Glen said, "Tali, one day you'll be able to run barefoot through the grass and play with the yulias all you want. You just have to be patient."

"I meant Garrus and Chloe." Tali said. "They're arriving today."

Her eyes widened. She activated her omni-tool. "Damn. They'll be here any minute. I should get my suit."

"Easy there, girl." Glen said, rising from the couch. "I'll go welcome them. You take it easy, okay?"

Tali opened her mouth to argue, only to quickly clap a hand over her mouth while the other reached desperately for the trash can.

"Yeah." Glen said, patting Tali on the shoulder as the quarian pulled the trash can close. "Take your time, okay?"

Glen left Tali and Shepard's part of the house. She froze outside the door; it had been a good ten minutes since she ate the strawberry, and she felt fine. That was hardly definitive proof, but it was certainly a good start.

"How about that?" Glen said, patting her pack of strawberries. "So far, so good. Now I just need a dextro guinea pig."

"Hello?" called out a voice from downstairs. "Is anyone home?"

"Garrus?" Glen called back, "That you?"

"Glen? Where are you?"

"Coming!" Glen's eyes fell on the container, a mischievous smile spreading across her face. She grabbed the container and hurried downstairs in time to see Garrus and his wife, Doctor Chloe Michel, entering through the main entrance of the house, a few Yulias slipping in behind them.

"Hey, Scar-face!" Glen slid down the last few feet of the banister and landed with the barest of stumbles. "Heard you were gonna come mooch off of Shepard's good graces."

"Couldn't be any worse than dealing with a grease-monkey like you." Garrus clasped Glen's arm. "Good to see you, Glen."

"You too, Garrus." Nodding at Chloe, Glen added, "You too, doc. Congrats, by the way; I tried to make the wedding, but my stupid door dropped me off on friggin Tatooine. Still shaking sand out of my clothes."

"Well, your present made it, in any case." Chloe said with a laugh. "Not exactly sure what it is, but we're grateful anyway."

Glen's brow furrowed. "You never used it? Damn, I'm sorry; I thought I sent instructions. It's a dream recorder; set it up next to your bed, and it'll record every dream you have on video. You can even set it to repeat old dreams before you go to sleep."

"Really?" Chloe said, her eyes wide. "That's amazing!"

"Speaking of presents,I've got something I'd like you to try, Garrus." Glen presented the container of omni-strawberries to Garrus. "Fresh from the garden. There'll be none of that 'protein-paste' crap here."

"You won't hear any complaints from me. I've had enough sludge to last me two lifetimes." Garrus picked up a blue strawberry and looked it over for a second before shrugging and taking a bite.

Glen held her breath as he chewed and swallowed. Chloe commented, "They smell nice. I didn't realize there was a dextro-equivalent to a strawberry."

"Well?" Glen asked, eyeing Garrus expectantly.

"Pretty good. Not too sweet, not too tart." He picked out a purple strawberry. "You grow these?"

"Indeed. We grow a lot of things; being this far from the other towns and cities requires us to be self-sufficient." Glen said with a bit of pride. "Don't worry; plenty of dextro and levo goodies for everyone. John's even thinkin' about making it a business."

"You're kidding," Garrus said, "Commander Shepard, slayer of the Reapers, a farmer?"

"There are a lot of aliens moving to Rannoch." Glen said matter-of-factly, "Between the Yulias colony and other cross-species couples, there are a lot of new-comers on Rannoch needing levo-protein food, and still plenty of quarians looking for something better than paste. Importing stuff costs an arm and a leg, but John and I think we can cut that cost by at least a limb."

"I see," Garrus said, "And where do the flying cats come into the picture?"

Glen glanced around and saw no less than twenty pairs of cat-like eyes staring at them with varying degrees of interest. Sighing, she said, "I'll tell you as we get you settled in."


	9. Chapter 9 - On the Farm

**Chapter 9**

 **On the Farm**

No one is sure what accident of magic, technology, or nature caused the Cleftan Region to constantly shift both climate and temperature. In the difference of a few moments, a windswept plain can become humid swampland or a frigid mountain.

Fortunately, the terraforming engine Glen 'borrowed' had a much easier time converting Rannoch's arid soil. With a little programming, they were able to convert the normally dry terrain around the Shepard Home into prime farmland. Fences were set up to ensure the chirality of crops weren't accidentally mixed during the seeding process.

That didn't mean it was easy; land had to be tilled, irrigation had to be set up, and seeds had to be planted, which is why Glen, Javik, and Shepard were out in the southern field for over four hours in the hot Rannoch sun, digging a long ditch for what would be an artificial river.

"I would be the laughing stock of my entire division if they could see me," Javik complained as he plunged the shovel back into the dirt.

"Now, now, Javik." John said, resting against the handle of his shovel. "It could be worse. Imagine how much harder this would be if we were out here moving dirt with our bare hands, instead of that nice tractor Glen ordered for us."

Glen wiped the sweat from her brow. "Oh, sure … it's my fault Sol-mart doesn't have next-day shipping across the damn galaxy."

John chuckled even as Javik grumbled. Eventually, they set their shovels aside and sat down in the folding chairs Glen brought for them. Glen made a pit stop at the cooler to grab drinks for herself and her friends; beer for John, hard lemonade for her, and asari honey mead for Javik. She tossed the bottles to her friends before sitting down herself.

"Look at it." Glen said, motioning with her bottle to the field before them. "May not look like much today, but in a few weeks, we'll have it producing enough to keep us fully stocked with veggies. We'll have fruit from the orchards, plenty of herbs, maybe even some eggs if those chickens ever hatch."

"Oh, good. I was just thinking how appetizing unfertilized avian ovum would be right now." Javik said, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

John and Glen chuckled at their friend's dour attitude. So far, Javik had turned his olfactory organs up at everything the Shepard House's pantry, usually telling them about some ancient Prothean dish that was supposedly much better.

"It's hard to believe." John whispered. When Glen glanced at him curiously, he said, "That just a year ago, we were fighting the Reapers."

"Well, to be fair, Rannoch was relatively untouched." Glen said.

"Yes … thanks to the geth." John's face fell.

Glen sighed. "Still no word from the deep space teams?"

"Nothing," John admitted. "I don't know what's worse; that they all might be dead, or that those that survived are so far out, they'll never know what happened to the others of their kind."

"Not never." Glen corrected. "Think about it; if some of them did head out into deep space, we probably won't see them back this way for at least a few hundred years."  
"Agreed." Javik said. "While I can't claim to be fond of the machines, they were no fools. They would not risk being discovered by the Reapers."

"I know. I just … knowing that some of them survived …"

Glen knew exactly what John wasn't saying. She'd been there when John made the choice, and how heavily the death of the geth and EDI had hit him. Even as she thought it, however, a frown spread over her face. Glen examined the Normandy's AI core for weeks once the crew returned to Rannoch. It wasn't that EDI's programming was broken; large chunks of it were simply gone.

"All right." Glen said, rising to her feet. "Enough of this feeling gloomy crap. We made a promise, didn't we? To live for those who didn't make it." Raising her glass, she said, "For Legion, EDI, and the geth!"

"Here, here." John said, raising his bottle. "For Ashley, Thane, Mordin, and Anderson!"

"For the Prothean Empire, finally avenged!' Declared Javik, raising his own glass. "And for us, who brought down the cycle once and for all!"

As they drained their respective drinks, John's omni-tool beeped. He glanced at it and said, "We should be getting back; I promised Tali I'd be home early today."

"Ah, that's right." Glen said, a grin spreading across her face. "Today's the big anniversary."

"You'll hear no complaint from me." Javik said. "Let us get out of this wretched sun."

They packed their gear quickly and hopped into the skycar. The flight home only took a few minutes by air, though they were joined by several curious yulias as they neared the landing pad. The cat-like creatures had certainly made themselves at home, though out of respect to John and Glen, they confined their exploration to the public rooms unless invited.

Glen brought the car down in the usual place, pausing for a few moments for a particularly rambunctious group of kittens to scamper away before activating the landing gear.

Javik left without so much as a backward glance, as always. Glen didn't mind; the Prothen simply was a man of few words. Once he was gone, however, John asked in a low tone, "Glen, about the strawberries …"

"Yes?"

"You're absolutely sure they're safe for Tali?"

"Absitively Posilutely." Glen told him. "Tried them myself. Tasted great, and no signs of rejection."

"And you're sure it'll be okay for her too?"

"Let me put it this way," Glen said, spotting Garrus approaching. She waved him over and asked, "Hey, Garrus! How you feeling?"

"Tired." He admitted. "While you three were playing in the dirt, I've been moving boxes. I swear, we didn't pack this much stuff when we first came here."

"No tummy-aches? Soreness? Uncontrollable tremors?"

"No …" Garrus said, raising an eye ridge at her. "But there was something I've been meaning to ask you. It's about that fruit you gave me yesterday."

"Yeah?" Glen said, doing her best to sound innocent. "Tasty, right?"

"Very," he agreed. "I looked for it in the gardens, but couldn't find it. You got anymore stashed someplace?"

Glen looked at John expectantly. He smiled and nodded. "Good enough for me."

"Zorah-Sweet Strawberries." Glen said, "I registered them with the agricultural commission this morning."

John's smile widened. "Thanks, Glen. I knew you wouldn't let me down … now I'd better go wash up. Got a full evening planned."

"Of course." Glen said, giving him a nod. As he walked away, she added beneath her breath, "You've got the evening, and Tali will take care of the night."

Realizing Garrus was still looking at her, Glen asked, "What's up?"

"What's with the Zorah-Sweet thing?"

"Oh, that. Fruit comes in a lot of varieties, so I figured this being a new type of strawberry-"

"A new type of strawberry? Wait a minute; aren't strawberries a levo-chirality fruit?"

"Normally, yeah, but I genetically engineered some strawberries so they're omni-chiral; both dexto and levo systems can eat 'em, no problem."

"Both … oh. Oh." Garrus's eyes narrowed. "Oh. So when you gave me the strawberry yesterday-"

Realizing where this was going, Glen said, "Whoa, would you look at the time I really should get back to my workshop."

She backed away, but not fast enough. Garrus put a restraining arm on her shoulder and said, "Why don't I escort you? It'll give you time to explain."

"Oh, goody." Glen said without much enthusiasm.


	10. Chapter 10 - Delegation

**Chapter 10**

 **Delegation**

With the strawberry experiment done, Glen's bedroom was back to its old messy self. Clothes identical for all save the stains lay on the floor and furniture, schematics of inventions and house expansions formed a wallpaper in and of itself, and most of the desk was covered with half-finished cans of cola. It was once again Glen's sanctuary.

Unfortunately, it didn't work quite as well when Garrus, now joined by his wife, cornered her, forcing her to sit on her bed and explain the entire strawberry affair like a student explaining a bout of mischief to the principal.

"So you see," Glen said, trying her best not to fidget under both Garrus's and Chloe's stern gazes, "The odds of it being dangerous were next to nothing."

"Next to nothing." Chloe said, her arms crossed. "And if it had sent my husband into anaphalactic shock?"

"Well, to be fair, we do have a doctor living here-" Glen cut herself off; it was clear from the look on Chloe's face that she was not amused.

"Look," Glen said, "I wouldn't have let Garrus get hurt. If it got that far, I'd have bent the rules."

Chloe and Garrus exchanged glances at this. Glen kept the use of her Dreamer abilities to a minimum to avoid attracting unwanted attention, but after serving together for so many years, they knew she was definitely no normal human.

"The strawberries work." Glen said, gesturing to the container sitting on her desk. "Think about it; fruit and vegetables that anyone can eat! Haven't you ever wanted to share a favorite dish with Chloe, Garrus? Some traditional Palavan cooking? Or how about you, Chloe? In my day, France was the home of fine dining. Surely you'd like to share some of that with Garrus."

"Okay, okay!" Garrus said, raising his hands. "We get the point."

Glen offered the container to them. "Then accept this first harvest as a sincere apology from me. Don't worry; I gave John a fresh batch."

"They are quite tasty." Garrus said as he and his wife helped themselves to the fruit.

"Perhaps the juice could be fermented?" Chloe said hopefully.

Glen snapped her fingers and pointed at Chloe. "Definitely a thought. I'll see about 0digging us out a wine cellar. For the meantime, I'm going to be trying to omni-convert what produce we're already growing; could be useful, now that we've got Tali and Garrus here."

"And Tara and Madeline." Chloe smiled at Glen's curious glance. "We received the news this morning; the adoption agency accepted our application."

"Really? Congratulations!" Glen hugged Chloe and gave Garrus a hearty slap on the back.

"We were worried there might be problems with us moving here; it's why we wanted to wait originally," Garrus said. "But apparently, someone not only sent a full video showcasing our new quarters, but also gave us a lengthy recommendation."

"Really?" Glen paused at the looks they gave her. "What? Wasn't me. Not that I wouldn't have, but I've been busy with this whole strawberry thing."

A long moment of silence passed before Chloe laughed and hugged Garrus's side. "Well, whoever did it, we'll be leaving tomorrow to pick up little Tara and Madeline."

"Speaking of which," Garrus said, putting an arm around his wife, "We'd better get back to unpacking. We've still got a lot of furniture to put together."

Glen walked them to the door before giving them the container of strawberries. "Don't hesitate to call if you need any help. Oh, and feel free to order any seeds you'd like greenlit into my little omni-program. Could always try and make some Vakarian apples."

"Vakarian apples." Garrus said as he and Chloe walked away from Glen's quarters. "I like the sound of that."

Glen shook her head, a grin on her face as her door closed. The success of the strawberries had her feeling on top of the world. Already, she was considering the possibilities if she could reproduce the effect: omni-hops for beer, omni-grain for bread, omni-sugar for sweets. She was even wondering if perhaps the effects could be spread to farm animals: omni-eggs and omni-milk? They might be able to make birthday cakes for little Tara and Madeline.

She was still thinking about the possibilities when her door opened, this time revealing Screep.

"Hey there, little guy!" Glen said, sitting up in her bed to greet the skriever. "I've been meaning to congratulate you! The strawberries came out perfectly."

The skriever let out a series of muted beeps that seemed oddly sheepish.

Glen stared at it for a moment before asking, "Is something wrong?"

The exchange that followed is hard to put to paper. The skriever language, while based on that of the Glyche, was made for communications between synthetic life forms, not bio-forms such as Glen. It was only her nature as a Dreamer that allowed her to understand. If one were to attempt to translate Screep however, the exchange would've sounded something like this:

"Friend Glen, I believe it is my duty to report an issue that has arisen."

"That sounds ominous." Glen said, hands on her hips. "Should I get Headache?"

"Clarification: not that kind of issue. You might consider requesting medical expertise."

"That's pretty serious. What's up?"

"I believe I may have made a slight error in my efforts to convert the strawberries."

Glen was silent for a few moments. "But they're fine. I'm fine, and so is Garrus."

"Clarification: the process was a success; the strawberries contain both levo and dextro amino acids."

"Whew. Good." Glen said, wiping her brow. "Thought I was gonna have to leg it to Tali's place in a second."

"That might still be a prudent course of action."

Glen frowned at the skriever. "Why? What did you do, Screep?"

Screep rubbed its front pincers nervously. "It was the delivery method that was the problem. I should have stuck with altering the genetic structure of the seeds directly, but there simply wasn't enough time. I came up with the idea of using a spray that was twenty-parts transversion cells, and eighty-parts nutrient solution formulated from the genetic samples of-"

"Screep."

"Look, I made it into a spray; the transversion cells would spread quickly, altering the DNA structure as the plant itself grew, allowing the cells to quickly adapt as needed."

"How is that an …" Glen stopped. "A spray? As in the sprinklers?"

"Yes, ma'am."

Glen swore under her breath. "Tali and I've been in that mess at least a dozen times already!"

"I know. For what it is worth, I don't believe the transversion cells have harmed either of you."

"Yeah, we'll see about that." Glen hurried from her room and entered the workshop. It took her a while to find her medical kit (she regenerated naturally, making such things useless to her), but once she did, she used the hypospray to take a measure of her blood. She then put the vial of blood on the cushion of the constructor.

"All right," She said, tapping at the controls. "Let's take a look at-"

A holographic helix appeared. It took Glen a moment to realize just what she was looking at, but when she did, she whispered, "Son of a bitch."

Her helix contained both a dextro and a levo pattern, just like the Zorah Sweets. The spray hadn't just converted the DNA of the strawberries; it converted hers as well.

"Huh." Glen said, looking at herself. "Well … I feel okay. Hey, does this mean I could totally eat normal dextro food?"

"I believe so." Screep said, "But there's something else. The transversion cells were designed specifically to convert whatever they came into contact with into a form compatible with the two samples you provided."

"John and Tali." Glen said, nodding. "And since it affected us, I'm guessing that means it's made Tali and I compatible with both quarians and hum-"

Glen stopped suddenly, the implications hitting her like a brick to the face. She left the workshop without another word, leaving Screep behind to chitter uncomfortably to itself.

Glen rushed through the house, up the stairs, and straight to Tali and John's room. She knocked a little louder and faster than she intended.

John opened the door, looking quite smart in his old uniform. "Ah, hello, Glen. We were just getting ready to leave for dinner."

"I need to see Tali for a sec." Glen stepped forward, paused as the scrubber passed over her, and hurried into the bathroom to find Tali wearing a lovely two-piece blue dress that exposed her midriff. Her friend spun about, a half-eaten strawberry clutched in her fingers.

"Glen?" Tali asked, a look of surprise on her face. "Is everything all right?"

Glen didn't respond at first, her eyes were on Tali's stomach, smooth and poking out just a little, as though she'd put on a little weight recently. Now Glen knew why.

"How did I not notice?" Glen whispered, running a hand through her hair. "How did I miss something like this?"

"Like what?" John asked, coming up behind Glen. "What's wrong?"

Cheeks flushed, Tali put a hand on her stomach. "I know I haven't been getting as much exercise lately."

John chuckled and stepped around Glen to pull his wife into his arms. "I don't care if you blow up into a blimp. I still love you."

They kissed, Glen still staring at Tali … or rather, the light within Tali's belly, courtesy of her Dreamer-enhanced eyes.

Some people would've found a way to say it gracefully, to weave it into conversation. Others might have insisted on making an occasion of it, pompously making as big an announcement as possible. Being neither pompous or graceful, Glen simply blurted out, "You're pregnant, Tali."


	11. Chapter 11 - One Heck of an Anniversary

**Chapter 11**

 **One Hell of an Anniversary Present**

John and Tali stared at Glen for what felt like hours. Glen tried to find something to say to fill the silence, but found she couldn't. She was just about as surprised as they were.

"If this is some kind of joke …" John said, brow furrowing.

"No!" Glen took a deep breath and said, "It's not … and yes, of course it's yours, John."

"What? That's not … I mean, I'd never think …" John said, cheeks flushed as Tali stared at Glen for a few more moments before activating her omni-tool.

She held the glowing orange hologram over her stomach for a moment, her expression quickly changing from disbelief to astonishment. Glen could see the tiny fetus on the display from where she stood. "John …"

John looked at her omni-tool's display. His jaw dropped a moment later.

"But … how …" he managed to say.

"Your strawberries." Glen said, unable to keep the smile off her face. "The stuff we used to make them omni-compatible was in the sprinklers. We both got a good dose of it, and in Tali's case, it … well, between that and the gene therapy, she's now biologically compatible with you. Congrats, John; you're gonna be a dad."

Tali was the first to recover. She let out a laugh of pure joy and threw her arms around her husband. John lifted her from the ground, joining her in laughter before planting a kiss on her stomach.

Glen smiled and turned to leave, only for John and Tali to grab her from behind and pull her into a hug.

"Big sister!" Tali said, "This is the best present ever!"

"Yeah, tell me that when the first kid's here, screaming and drawing on the walls." Glen said with a grin.

"First kid?" John asked. "You mean-"

"Pretty sure the process is permanent. I don't know the odds, but the way you two go at it, I'm sure we'll see quite a few little Shepards running around this place."

"Oh!" Tali said, gray cheeks darkening. "W-well, maybe two or three-"

"Oh, at least a dozen!" John said, getting surprised shriek from Tali as he picked her up again. "A whole flock of Shepards!"

Glen opened her mouth to respond when she heard the door to John and Tali's quarters open. Liara's voice called out, "John? Tali? Is everything all right?"

"Better than all right!" He said, carrying Tali back into the main room. She gave him a swift slap on the backside when he put her down that made him grin all the wider. "Tali's pregnant."

"What?" Liara said, eyes wide. "But she's … and you're …"

"Why don't we talk about it over dinner?" John said. "Everyone. It's a house-hold event, after all."

"Are you sure?" Glen asked. "I mean, it's your anniversary."

"Yes, and we're going to share it with our friends." John said, looking to Tali for agreement she readily gave.

Quievus was one of the few restaurants in the cities near the Shepard House that catered to both levo and dextro customers. They needn't have bothered; Chloe spent much of the meal fussing over Tali, while John seemed too excited to eat his food.

Glen took the opportunity to try some quarian cuisine for a change. She picked something off the menu that had an interesting-looking name (a shame that a Dreamer's ability to translate other languages doesn't work in regards to written word), and received a pleasing stew that tasted strongly of pepper and potatoes.

"The implications are enormous." Liara said as Glen took a sip of her drink. "Current gene therapies have a success rate of twenty percent or less; if we could reproduce these effects, the quarians could be out of their suits in a matter of weeks."

"We still aren't completely sure if what happened to Tali is a result of Miss Glen's transversion cells or the gene therapy," Chloe said, finally sitting down. "Or some combination of both. I'm thrilled this worked out well for you, Tali, but we really should run more tests to make sure it is safe."

"Of course." Tali said. "Is everything all right?"

Chloe nodded. "No signs of rejection, and growth is well in-line for quarian gestation."

"Then the child will be quarian." Javik said. The prothean had been more than just a bit skeptical when he'd heard the news.

"Quarian, but with definite human characteristics." Chloe told them. "I'm already detecting some of the genetic markers from your gene therapy as well."

"Hey!" Glen said, grinning at the excitement in Tali's eyes. "No need for suits."

"Or bubbles." Tali said, her hands resting on her stomach. "I … I'll be able to hold her, to feel her skin on mine."

Kasumi hugged Tali's side. She hadn't stopped smiling since she heard the news. "Hoping for a girl?"

"I'll be happy with a healthy child." Her expression softened. "Keelah … part of me still can't believe it."

"Just wait a few months." Liara said, shifting in her seat. "It's much easier to believe when they start kicking."

Most of the table had a good chuckle at that.

"Might have a word with Matron Perriweather." Kasumi said before draining her glass. "She just had a litter; perhaps she could give you some advice."

"Ah, yes, the yulias." Javik said, setting down his own glass. "I must confess, I thought them pests when you first brought them."

"And now?" Glen asked.

Javik snorted. "Still pests … but friendly ones. I could, however, do without their young calling me 'the ancient one'."

"The ancient one doesn't sound so bad," said Garrus, otherwise known to the yulias as 'half-face bird-man'."

The group finished their dinner and moved on to dessert, a large pudding of some sort and two pieces of apple pie. Conversation went, as it often did when they got together as a group, to their old friends and allies. Glen listened for a while before letting her thoughts drift. Just a few years ago, she'd been a determined loner, outright avoiding having connections. Now here she was, part of a family that included a turian, a quarian, an asari, and a prothean. It almost made her close friends at Ebott look normal.

"Glen?"

Glen shook her head and looked at Tali. "Sorry?"

"Well, with Garrus and Chloe adopting, and Liara and I carrying, I was wondering … have you ever had a child?"

"Personally? No. Teria and I were talking about it, before …" Glen's smile faded as she thought of Teria, her beautiful tigreth bride. For the first time in a while, she felt the awful pang of absence in her chest, and a powerful yearning to be with the woman she loved.

Shaking her head, Glen said, "The thing is, having children is just one way to plant a seed. Having friends is another, and am glad to say the seeds of friendship we've planted have grown since that fateful day John caught me snoozing behind that cargo crate on Eden Prime."

"Here, here!" John said lifting his glass. "To the seeds we've planted!" He put his arm around Tali, who took the opportunity to rest her head on his shoulder as he continued, "May they forever bear us and our families fruit."

"To the seeds," chanted the rest of the group, raising their glasses in tandem.

"Hang on!" Glen hurriedly put down her glass and stood up from the table. Hurrying a short distance away, she made a rectangle with her fingers and said, "Okay, on my mark, say 'Seeds!"

She lowered her hands, even as the rectangle she made with her fingers remained. She hurried back to her seat and turned to face the glowing rectangle, smiling wide as she said, "Now!"

"Seeds!" everyone said moments before the rectangle let off a flash.


End file.
